DIY & Crafts

How to Cut and Peel Ginger Like a Pro

Ginger is a panacea. Studies have shown that the enjoyment of this fragrant, spicy root relieves the pain of arthritis patients, counteracts travel sickness and reduces flu and colds.

She brings us healthy through the winter and fights the runny nose like garlic fights vampires in the cold season.

For thousands of years, we have praised ginger for its medicinal properties. We use it to prepare tea, mix it into stews, soups and even cocktails (the latter may deprive the ginger of its medicinal powers, but what’s the point? Ginger tastes great in a long drink.

No fear of the fresh ginger tuber

Perhaps you like to eat the pickled variety of sushi as a side dish. Perhaps you like to season your dishes with the powdered ginger that you can buy in the supermarket. At the same time, it is incredibly easy to prepare fresh ginger at home – something that even the biggest chef would be able to do.

All you have to do is grate or chop the versatile root, but the sight of the untreated ginger tuber can intimidate the cook a bit. Their dents, holes and crevices seem very exotic at first glance, but let us shy away from the tuber.

If you are clumsy in handling the grater, you run the risk of rubbing your ankles – and who likes blood-soaked ginger? Yuck!

But the fear of bloody fingers really shouldn’t stop you from preparing fresh ginger in your kitchen.

Three accessories: knife, spoon, fork

There is a simple trick that both speeds up and facilitates the process and reduces the risk of injury. All you need is a knife, spoon and fork – and off you go.

If you have a large root with many arm and leg extremities, simply cut them away with a knife. For most recipes you don’t need a whole tuber and you can keep the leftovers for another time (how to do this is described at the end of the article).

First use the spoon to scrape off the top layer of the ginger. This will remove the skin without damaging the ginger meat. In addition, the spoon will adapt to the bizarre shape of the tuber and penetrate easily into every gap.

Now the fork is used: You have to rub the peeled plant against its teeth. Delicate pieces of ginger will be released from the tuber and layered into a small pile – you will be spared bloody fingers guaranteed by this process.

How best to store ginger:

If the plant is wrinkled and soft, it has probably already passed its best days.

Fresh ginger survives in the refrigerator for almost a week

Put the tuber in the freezer and it will last about two months longer. However, you should not peel the skin and wrap the ginger in aluminium foil or cling film. This makes it easier to peel the root because it is less fibrous.

In the supermarket you can also get dried or candied ginger. It can even be stored for a year if you rarely cook with it.